On 24 September 2026, the 9th TEJ Tourism Ministers’ Meeting was held at Tourism EXPO Japan 2026 at Tokyo Big Sight. UN Tourism was represented by Ion Vilcu, Director of the Affiliate Members Department, and Tadashi Kaneko, Director of the Regional Support Office for Asia and the Pacific.
The meeting brought together tourism ministers from 10 countries and representatives of international organizations to exchange views on the theme “Reimagining the Future of Tourism – Investment Strategies for Regenerative Tourism”.
Participating countries highlighted the importance of public-private partnerships encompassing not only environmental and cultural heritage preservation but also the development of industrial infrastructure. They also raised the need to advance digitalization and develop human resources in the tourism sector. International organizations also presented the private-sector perspective of viewing destinations as strategic investment opportunities through regenerative tourism.
